Chapter 9 #5
“Who uses sex if necessary to get the information.” I snorted. “How do you and Carla interact, then? I know she was the one who arranged to have the drug you were using on me made.”
“Carla made the initial contract approach and provides my orders, but I’ve never met her, either in France or here in the UK.”
“Then how were you giving her the information you dragged from my mind?”
“I wasn’t—”
“Just give me a straight fucking answer,” I cut in, that fierce wave of anger sweeping through me again. “Or gods help me, I will force it from you.”
He didn’t answer. Not immediately. Then Mathi lightly touched my arm, and I realized I was dragging the air away from Eljin—my brain was currently refusing to think of him as René—making it impossible for him to breathe, let alone speak.
I swore, pushed the anger down, and released him. He took several great gulping gasps of air and looked pale. Frightened, even, if only very briefly.
Satisfaction slipped through me, a small snake I needed to be very, very wary of.
“Jarvil,” he eventually gasped. “It was all done through Jarvil Maehdon.”
My gaze shot to Mathi’s. “Jarvil was a broker?”
“Of antiquities, yes. I was unaware he also brokered services.”
“He doesn’t,” Eljin said, still battling for air.
“I purchased small antiquities from him that contained either instructions or the drug. I have no idea if his contact was Carla, so if you want answers, you need to talk to him. Now, please, can you put me right way up? It’s becoming rather uncomfortable. ”
“Good,” was my only response to his plea. “How, then, were you sending the information you stole?”
“Same method, basically. I simply returned the item for a refund.”
I glanced at Mathi, my eyebrows raised in silent question.
“An old but reliable method,” he said. “Especially in an age where everything is done on the phone or online.”
I returned my gaze to Eljin. “I take it that box you were shoving into your bedside drawer when I arrived at your place the other day was one of your so-called purchases?”
“Yes—”
“Then you must have gotten it from someone else—Carla killed Jarvil at least a week ago.”
He blinked. “Why would she do that? She was fucking the man.”
“An interesting comment, given you claim never to have met the woman in the UK,” Mathi commented.
“No, but I did meet Jarvil on a regular basis at his shop and scanned him on several occasions.” He smiled, though it held little warmth. “It always pays to uncover what you can about your employer’s minions, just in case things go ass up.”
“Does that mean you saw Carla’s true form via his thoughts?” Mathi asked.
“No. I only know the form she presented to Jarvil.”
“And that was?”
“Carla Wilson.”
Surprise flitted through me. For some reason, I’d been expecting her to use a different surname with Jarvil, especially given there were multiple arrest warrants out for that identity.
But maybe Jarvil had valued sex with her more than he had the law.
He was a dark elf, after all, and while they were generally far more law abiding than Ljósálfar elves, they did basically own the black market.
Or was I being unfair to a dead man? Carla possessed a blade that allowed her to control the actions of anyone whose flesh it tasted, so maybe she wasn’t as busy in the bedroom as we were all presuming. Maybe her “conquests” were fed the belief of sex rather than the actuality.
A sudden change in the building’s song caught my attention. I slipped into the golden rivers and studied the approaching movement; it was light, and spoke of earth and stone.
I glanced at Mathi. “I think Bodhrán is here.”
“I’ll go get him.”
As Mathi turned and strode toward the loft ladder, Eljin said, “Who is Bodhrán?”
“The Myrkálfar coming to collect your ass.” I approached him, stopping when only a few feet separated us. “You really should have broken the contract and walked away the minute you discovered who Cynwrig was, Eljin.”
He snorted. “Why? Do you honestly think you are more than a plaything to him?”
“I’d rather be a plaything than an assignment. At least with Cynwrig, I knew where I stood. Whereas with you—”
“Oh, do not try to tell me that I hurt your feelings, Bethany, because I’ve been in your head and your dreams and know the truth.
” His tone was harsh. Derisive. “Your feelings were never engaged when it came to me. Even if I hadn’t been paid to fuck you, you would never have chosen me.
You want what you cannot have; you and I never stood a chance. ”
I opened my mouth to deny it, then closed it again. As he’d said, he’d been in my head, and he knew. “Truth or not, it does not negate what I said. Cynwrig considers me part of his harem, and you do not mess with a Myrkálfar’s ladies.”
He didn’t reply. His chest seemed to be rising at a more rapid rate, suggesting he was having trouble breathing. Which I guessed was logical, given that not only was he bent in half but upside down. All his organs and intestines would be squished together and pressing down on his lungs.
That small snake slipped through me again, whispering, Who really cares?
I flipped him upright. I was not going to be what my father wished.
Once his breathing had eased, he said, “You cannot give me to the dark elves. It is unconscionable.”
“Unconscionable would be handing you over to the IIT and letting Carla kill you. The Myrkálfar will keep you safe.”
“If you think that, you are a fool.”
“I said safe. I didn’t say comfortable. I believe there is a very deep, dark hole with your name on it, Eljin. I hope the money was worth it.”
With that, I turned and walked away before the anger got to me again and I did something stupid.
“Bethany, please, you cannot do this,” he called after me.
I kept walking.
“They want you controlled, Bethany.”
I stopped cold and turned, hands clenched against the rage that was once again rising. “And how do you know this if you’re not in direct contact with Carla?”
“An antiquity with new directions arrived this afternoon. It’s why I came here this evening.”
“To kidnap me? Or kill me?”
“I am many things, but a killer? No.”
“Love to believe that, but sadly, I cannot.” Overhead, thunder rumbled, the noise so loud, so close, the building shook with its fury. My fury.
“Look, I came here to invite you to dinner—”
“During which I would once again be plied with a drug, one that would this time knock me out, and then handed over to the lovely Carla, who would attempt to make me compliant to her wishes.”
He hesitated. “Yes.”
“Luckily for me, then, that I was already aware of your duplicity.”
I turned and started down the stairs.
“They will kill you if they can’t control you, Bethany.”
“They wouldn’t be the first to try, and they probably won’t be the last, given the game is afoot.”
“You can’t do this, Bethany.”
“Watch me.”
I continued down. He kept calling my name, but he didn’t call for help.
Perhaps he knew that of his two options, the Myrkálfar were likely the best. I dumped my purse onto the sofa, then walked over to the kitchenette and put on the kettle.
Bodhrán and Mathi appeared on the stairs, neither making much sound but their presence echoing heavily through the building’s song.
“Is he still upstairs? Or have you thrown him out through one of the skylights?” Mathi said, the amusement crinkling his eyes belying the seriousness in his tone.
“I was tempted to do the latter, but resisted.” I glanced at Bodhrán. “How do you intend to get him out without attracting attention?”
“What can’t be seen can’t attract,” he said.
“A light shield? How’d you get one of those at such short notice?”
The dark elf grinned. “You’d be surprised at the range of magical implements that are available within a five-minute walk of this tavern.”
“Really?” I paused. “I don’t suppose one of those goodies would be a long-distance type of magical tracker, would it?”
“Most likely—why?”
“Because I have a bad habit of getting kidnapped, and I promised a friend I would get one.”
“If you ask my opinion—”
“And I’m really not,” I cut in, amused.
“—I’m thinking it’s probably unnecessary, given the circumstances.”
The circumstances no doubt being Cynwrig’s ability to track my weight on the earth. “But you’ll get one for me anyway?”
“Indeed, I will.” He glanced at Mathi. “Where is our prisoner?”
“This way. Beth, you want to release him?”
I did so. A heavy thump rumbled through the flooring as he hit harder than he normally would have from that height. I may or may not have had something to do with that.
I flicked on the lights, made my tea, then grabbed a block of chocolate from the fridge and moved over to the sofa. The fire was out, and by the time I had it burning again, Mathi and Bodhrán were on their way back down.
Not that I could see Bodhrán—despite the growing darkness that haunted this upper floor, the light shield encompassed him completely, allowing him to move between the patches of light and shadows without the usual giveaway shimmer—and that generally meant expensive.
“I’ll just make sure he gets out without incident,” Mathi said. “Be back in five.”
“You want a coffee?”
“Are we talking instant, or will you drag the maker out of the cupboard?”
“I haven’t the energy to drag.”
“Then no, thank you.”
I snorted, sat back on the sofa, and broke open the chocolate. When he returned, I said, “I think Eljin has a stash of the drug he was using on me in his bedside drawer—is there any chance we could use it to trace the herbalist responsible for it?”
“Perhaps. If you give me the alarm code, I’ll stop by his place on my way home and collect it.” He paused. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Angry as all get out, but fine.” I gave him the code, then bit into the chocolate. “I forgot to mention—when I was in the cavern, the harp started to sing, which likely means Carla was using the pectoral on someone. It might be worth contacting your father—”
“You might have more luck with Sgott. My father appears unusually determined to keep the system locked down right now.”
Which remained unusual behavior when it came to his son, and it had me remembering the conversation I’d overheard.
I hesitated, then said, “My most recent vision suggested someone high up in IIT has been compromised by Carla. Do you think your father, or even, gods forbid, Sgott, might be one of Carla’s unwilling victims? ”
“I seriously doubt Sgott is. Aside from the fact he’s still grieving the loss of your mother, very few people would get close enough to that man with a blade and live to tell the tale.
As for my father—” He grimaced. “We can’t totally discount the possibility, but Carla isn’t an elf.
While I have never had any qualms about bedding a gorgeous woman no matter what the race, he is the exact opposite. ”
“He doesn’t have to bed her to be stabbed by the blade.”
“True, but the only time my father is alone outside his office within the IIT is in the Ljósálfar compound. She wouldn’t get one step beyond the outer sanctum, let alone anywhere near the inner.”
“That still leaves the possibility of it being someone close to either of them.”
“Yes, but if we catch Carla and destroy the blade, it is a problem that becomes moot.”
“Only as far as Carla controlling them. We already know they’re willing to use drugs—you’re evidence enough of that.”
He grimaced again. “Yes, but regular drug testing has long been a feature in the IIT.”
“But you’ll still mention it to your father?” When he nodded, I leaned forward and picked up my tea mug. “What are your plans for this evening?”
“I’ve a date.”
“With a prospect?”
“No.”
I rolled my eyes. “How do you intend to know and understand the woman you’ll eventually marry if you’re off fucking around with random other women?”
“My lawyers are currently in contract negotiations with those representing the final three. Until that is all dealt with, I refuse to give any party unwarranted hope.”
“It’s all so clinical, Mathi. You deserve better than a ‘good’ deal. You deserve someone who cares.”
“I have you.”
I rolled my eyes. “That is not what I’m talking about.”
“When it comes to matters of the heart, I am a desert.” His voice was dry, but amusement danced in his blue eyes. “One emotionally close contact is all I have room for.”
I snorted and chucked my purse at him. He caught it with a laugh.
As he did, the harp began to sing.